Sunday, 6 March 2011

Remi Miles & Written in Waters

Remi Miles and his band put on their first show in Brighton debuting their 60's inspired Pop Rock. Their relatively short set allows the audience to keep interest in their music as the Hendrix and Smith's cliches keep rolling. It's not that their set wasn't enjoyable, it's just apparent that these vocal hooks and musical ideas have been done before and to death.

Frontman Remi has a good voice but not good enough to egotistically name the band after himself. Such confidence demands a vocal that doesn't waver in and out of tune and a performance that doesn't make me feel awkward. At one point he got off the stage in a near attempt to muster some extra enthusiasm from the audience but upon realising this was far to bold a move, got straight back on.

Pardoning the annoying cliches however some of the better rehearsed songs were received well. The melodic harmonies from the backing band sounded much stronger than the lead vocal would have you believe. The rhythm section was tight, albeit the arguably less than sober gurning sweat box that was the drummer had his cymbal stand six foot in the air screaming to be called 'a nob'.

Remi Miles need to do something much more original. For better or for worse the 60's and 70's happened with some great moments in music, it's just not necessary to repeat them. If you are going to name a band after yourself, make sure it is something special.

Written in Waters were a breath of fresh air, boldly trying to create something new and different around Brighton. This is dramatically noticeable upon their image, wearing hockey masks to accentuate the facelessness of the band members and reinforce front-woman Beth Cannon's role in the band.

Their Avant-Garde/Post Rock sound likened to Sigur Ros and Anthony And The Johnsons was closely watched by everybody in the venue. The opening track saw Beth singing in Italian(?) and an operatic like style that would be continued throughout the set. Her use of vocals was more of an instrumental addition than a lyric spurting bot.

Their line up of Keyboards, Guitar, Bass and Drums was utilised in a very interesting way controlling dynamics masterfully and creating delay drenched sound scapes that tickles the imagination. Guitarist George McKenzie was even seen using a bow in one of the tracks bringing some extra experimentation that works in their favour.

Written In Waters are exciting, original and not afraid to try something new and it will be interesting to see where this takes them as they carve out a name for themselves on the local scene.